In his new book, Stephen Sestanovich looks at how America alternates between overdoing it and then underdoing it. Maximalist puts the history of U.S. foreign policy in an unexpected new light, while drawing fresh, compelling lessons for the future. The book unearths the backroom stories and vivid personalities that bring American foreign policy to life. It also finds lessons in the past that anticipate and clarify our chaotic present.

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Christine Fair, associate professor at Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service and expert on South Asian political and military affairs, joins James M. Lindsay to discuss Pakistan’s July 25 election and incoming Prime Minister Imran Khan.